No Explanation! (Pandora Hearts)
by Katrina23l
Summary: "What a strange sight..." "Indeed." "Will they...?" "I believe so." "So? It's begun then?" "...Yes, I suppose."
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1 - From Good to Bad

A twinge at the corner of his eyebrow was what woke him. The pain wasn't ordinary, but it wasn't seldom either. It was going on to be just a thing he would have to get used to. Waking up every morning to a sharp pain just below his forehead. Ah, how awful...

He sat up, rubbing at his forehead with his index finger and thumb. How long ago had this started...? Ah, that's right. It almost felt too soon...

"I'm jealous!" The same boy who had always kept his emotions bottled up and his behind a mischievous smile suddenly started sobbing, wiping at his eyes frantically.

Of course, this gave him a shock. He had never known what it was like to see someone as important as his master cry. Let alone say he was jealous.

"I'm jealous! Pay attention to me more! Stop hanging out with him! I deserve you more!" The boy clenched at his blond bangs, unable to stop the tears from streaming down his face like a waterfall. It was just impossible.

Thinking back on the situation now, he had told his master that he would think about it, but he could've sworn it was some strange dream... However, it was troublesome how immature his master acted only a few weeks ago. He was technically twenty-five years and counting.

"...Haah..." So, today was the day that Gilbert Nightray would finally reply to his master. His wonderful master, Oz Vessalius.

"Haah?! Seaweed head?! What are you doing here?!" The utter bane of Gilbert's existence stood in front of him, the girl's chest puffed out like she was actually someone important.

"I could say the same to you, stupid rabbit!" Gilbert shot back, clenching his fists to restrain himself from doing anything he'd regret later. Not that he'd do much damage anyway. Of course, not to her at least.

The girl's name was Alice. However, she was a Chain. A Chain known as the B-Rabbit. A Chain feared by many other Chains because of the B-Rabbit's pure strength. No wisdom or strategy. Just pure brawn.

Alice crossed her arms and turned her head away. "Are you just gonna keep me waiting on an answer?! Hurry up and reply already! Or do I have to repeat it because all your stupid seaweed hair was in the way?" She gave a triumphant grin and narrowed her eyes. It seemed she wouldn't back down so easily.

"Haaah?!" Gilbert suddenly got irritated, and the pain shot back to his eyebrow. It wouldn't be easy to have him back off now either. "At least I don't have meat for brains!"

Alice flinched, drooling a bit just at the word 'meat.' Surely that was a bad thing...? "I have a servant! And you are a servant! Who's higher on the scale here?" She looked down at him as if she had won, which it was unclear as of now.

However, before Gilbert could shoot another comeback toward Alice, the two heard footsteps. They were light, but it was easy to tell who it was, just by that alone. Yes, it was Gilbert's master, and Alice's 'servant.' Oz Vessalius.

"Hi~! Did you guys wait long~?" Yes, his footsteps were definitely easy to set apart, for his were lighter and sounded more like a skip than a walk.

"Huh?" Alice tilted her head. "How long have we been here...?" She looked down, seeming a bit defeated as she tried her best to calculate whatever she could, even if she didn't know how to.

"Oh, I...guess the time flew by..." Gilbert smiled at his master, who returned the smile.

"That's a relief... Anyway, I called you both out here for a reason." Oz nodded, becoming serious. "I wanted to say..." He twitched slightly, as if what he wanted to say was hard to get out. "You guys...are my family~!"

The thought was easily dissolved as Oz flew at the both of them, hugging them both tightly. Alice struggled slightly, a bit confused at what was going on, but Gilbert just smiled.

"Me too," he muttered softly under his breath. Of course, he was would normally be referring to the entire Pandora staff, but this time it was exclusively Oz. And maybe—just maybe—Alice too.

"Haven't you noticed Gilbert's strange behavior lately?" A few staff members of Pandora had gathered together in a hallway, discussing Gilbert Nightray quietly under their breaths, as not to be heard. However, this meeting was nothing like the meetings of the Blue Rose Club, or even the Black Rose Club.

"I'm sure he's giving off a happier aura, can't you tell?" Another member nodded as he spoke, seeming confused.

"I wonder what's gotten into him...?"

"Probably something that has to do with Oz." One member sounded absolutely sure that that was the answer, and grinned.

A few other members nodded, chiming in with "Yeah," "I suppose..." and, "Absolutely!"

"See? It's most definitely the answer!" The same member pointed a finger in the air. "Now that it's resolved, let's get back to work before someone catches us off duty."

The group members nodded and quickly left the hallway in all different directions. They left no trace that they were there, except for their faint footprints.

Fwah, I'm so glad... Even though I was the one choosing in the end, it still feels great... Gilbert smiled happily as he walked down the hallway of Pandora, heading toward Oz's room. It wasn't strange for Oz to call Gilbert out recently, but Gilbert didn't mind in the least. In fact, he enjoyed being called out by his master.

"Oz?" Gilbert knocked gently on the door as he called his master's name. "I'm coming in." He pushed the door open slightly and walked in. "Haaaaahh?!"

"Ah?" A man looked up from his desk, his short brown hair a bit messy from all of the stress he'd been having recently. Ever since he had given him more and more documents to file, work had been harder. Not meaning that he didn't enjoy it, of course. He just...wanted some occasional free-time. "Did you hear that...?"

"Mmn. I did." A girl smiled down at the man as she handed him another document. "My apologies, Reim, but it seems that Break has given you more documents..."

Reim shook his head. "No need to apologies, Sharon. I'm alright." He smiled a bit awkwardly, not used to the gesture of happiness or friendship. It wasn't a first, exactly, but he definitely didn't want to have to smile like that again. "Anyway, what... What was that...?"

Sharon just giggled softly. "Oh, I don't think you have to worry. It's just them."

At that, Reim understood. Although, he wasn't absolutely used to this yet... "Oh...yes. Thank you." He nodded, and Sharon smiled as she left.

What a pain, Reim thought, shaking his head slightly.

"O-O-O-Oz?!" Gilbert faltered a bit, stumbling backward, face flushed a dark red. He definitely wasn't expecting that...

"Hmm~? What's wrong, Gil~?" Oz remained in his usual cheerful state, although...something was absolutely, horrifically, despicably, terribly off...

"O-O-Oz, y-you...?!" Oz's valet fumbled over his words, his fingers twitching as he tried desperately to physically grab them, even though he knew it wouldn't work at all.

"Haah~? You're overreacting..." Oz puffed out his cheeks slightly, looking annoyed. Sometimes, he looks like a little kid. Well, other than the fact that he looks fifteen all the time...

"I-I...?!" Gilbert couldn't find the right words still, and just continued to stutter out the beginnings of what seemed like different sentences.

"Jeez, Gil, you're so rude." Oz huffed, standing up and walking over to Gilbert, who frantically waved Oz away out of embarrassment.

"W-w-w-wait, n-n-n-no...!" Gilbert instinctively shouted out, making Oz flinch back.

"Ah," He muttered softly, smirking. "Gil," he said, his voice becoming stern, "this...is an order, okay...? Stay still."

Hyaaah...! Gilbert screamed internally, but didn't disobey his master. His face was a bright red as Oz shuffled his way to sit in the space between Gilbert's legs.

"See? It's not that bad~" Even though his face was cheerful, his tone had a subtle tone of sadness mixed in. He turned around so his back faced Gilbert, and leaned back against his chest. "Gil, you're warm..."

"U-u-uh...?" Gilbert didn't know how to reply, only managing a stuttered and confused word out. He had also automatically pulled his hands up away from Oz, as he didn't want to touch him while his master was dressed...like that.

Almost as if he had read Gilbert's mind, Oz mumbled, "Gil...? What's wrong?" He turned his head upward to look at his valet.

"Y-y-y-your c-c-clothes..." Gilbert weakly muttered the words out, but Oz didn't see what the problem with his clothes were.

"What's wrong with my clothes?" He asked, looking down at himself. Of course, it was strange to be wearing pajamas in the middle of the afternoon... Especially if they were girls' pajamas...

"T-t-they're s-s-s-see-through...!" Gilbert shouted at Oz without thinking, and Oz sat up, turning toward Gilbert with a serious look. However, he looked disappointed.

"Do...you not like it...?" Oz pursed his lips a bit, narrowing his eyes in thought.

Gilbert flinched back at the question. W-what type of a question is that?! He thought, frantically trying to avoid the question at all costs. "A-anyway, j-j-just g-go change..."

"Gil," Oz looked at Gilbert straight in the eyes. "Yes, or no?" He was dead serious. There was no possible way for Gilbert to avoid this now.

"...I-it's, u-um, w-well..." Gilbert turned his head to the side, blushing harshly. "...I-it's not t-t-t-that I d-d-don't l-like it..."

At that, Oz lit up. "Aw, Gil, you're so shy~!" He launched himself forward and wrapped his arms around Gilbert's neck, rubbing their cheeks together affectionately. Oz really was like a hamster in some aspects...

"Hey." Suddenly, a voice came from under Oz's bed. "Would you two be quiet? I'm trying to sleep..."

"...Hah...?" Oz and Gilbert both looked at Oz's bed blankly, their voices overlapping with confusion.

"Ugh, you two can't shut up, huh?" The owner of the voice crawled out from under the bed, revealing herself. She stretched her arms out above her head, yawning. "Haah... I'm leaving."

"A..." Oz turned his head to glance at Gil for a minute, who was pale with shock and embarrassment, before turning back to the voice's owner. "Alice?!"

"Huh? What?" Alice gave Oz a confused look before shrugging and heading to leave. "Whatever, you're too noisy."

Oz smiled wryly. "I-I'm suddenly feeling v-very worn out... I-I'm turning in f-for the day..." He slowly stood up and stiffly headed over to his bed, crawling under the blanket and curling up.

Gilbert, however, had already fainted a while before.

"Haaaaaahh?!" A loud scream emitted from Oz's room, and could be heard throughout Pandora Headquarters. The scream belonged to one of the staff who had come to inform Oz of a meeting with his uncle, Oscar, but he came to find...

"O-Oz?! G-Gilbert?!" The staff member twitched slightly out of fear and worry, trembling. He had absolutely no idea what he was supposed to do in this situation. Gilbert was sprawled out on the floor like a doll, as pale as a ghost, and Oz was huddled up in a ball under his blankets, visibly trembling. It was quite the sight for anyone.

But, in the end, they both somehow made it. And Alice was just as oblivious as ever. So, everything turned out okay. Well, almost everything...

"I...? I just...?" The same staff member who had found Oz and Gilbert shook his head rapidly, eyes wide. Apparently, he couldn't get the image of the two out of his head. He ended up taking a few days off to rest. And, apparently, he had also been caused a lot of stress because of it.

Well, it turns out everything did turn out fine in the end. Oh, and, Oz and Gilbert avoided each other for a while after the incident, which caused some staff confusion, but after a while, they returned to their usually happy states. All's well that end's well, isn't it...?


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2 - A Visit From The Past

"Gil!" Oz ran over to Gilbert immediately once he caught sight of his valet, holding out a bag of chocolate sweets. "Here! I made these for you, after all, it's been an entire month already~" He grinned broadly, rocking back and forth on his feet.

Gilbert took the bag of sweets into his hand and examined it. He smiled affectionately at his master and nodded, his face turning a bright red. "Thank you, I'll treasure each one..." Sure, it sounded a bit strange, but he truly meant what he said.

Oz waved a hand at him, smiling back. "Aw, Gil, you don't have to do that~!" He wrapped his arms around Gilbert's waist, resting his chin on his chest so that he was looking up at Gilbert. "But thank you... I feel like I don't appreciate you as often as I should... And since...I thought it might be better to not take you for granted as often anymore... I'm really sorry about that in the first place, Gil..."

Gilbert's blush grew as his master spoke such sweet words to him. It was true that maybe he felt a bit neglected by Oz occasionally, but he never felt the need to be showered in as much affection as his little brother already provided for him. "N-no, it's fine. I-I'm just glad I'm able to spend time with you..." At such honesty, Gilbert's face heated up tremendously, being enough to make Oz chuckle.

"Gil, that's so kind of you... But I still can't just toss away what I feel. I'm going to try and appreciate you more, okay?" Oz tightened his arms around Gilbert's waist a bit, as if he was trying to trap him into agreeing somehow. And yet, it seemed to work...

"Nngh, alright..." Gilbert waved Oz off him, to which Oz was surprisingly obedient. _Huh... I've never seen Oz do what I say before... Agh, no! What are you thinking?! He'd never allow that! It must be part of the 'appreciating' thing..._

Oz stood there, his head tilted to the side as Gilbert mentally battled his thoughts. "Gil?" He asked, a bit confused.

"Huh? Oh, sorry..." Gilbert bowed slightly in apology, quickly reorganizing his thoughts and focusing again.

However, something was strange. Oz's face was a bit pale, and yet it held the slightest hint of adoration. "Oz?" Now it was Gilbert's time to ask what was wrong. But before he could even get another question out, Oz launched at him.

Or, at something behind him.

"Uwah, you're so cute! Why are you here? No, how are you here? Ah, it doesn't matter, now I have _two_ Gils~!" At Oz's sudden outburst, nothing really stood out to Gilbert. That is, except for 'two Gil's'.

"... _What_?" Gilbert turned around, and froze immediately. "T-that's..."

Before he could finish, Oz stood up, holding a younger Gilbert's hand. "Yep, it's you~! Cute, huh?" He grinned, looking down at the younger Gilbert, who was trying to move back and hide behind Oz. The sight could've captured anyone's heart.

"Wha—?!" Suddenly, Gilbert was tackled from behind. Hearing a strangely nostalgic voice, it shouted to him, too loud to be anyone other than Oz.

"Gil, Gil, why're you so tall?!" The voice came from behind him, to which he presumed that another young child had come here. Specifically, a younger Oz.

Faltering slightly, but catching his balance before he fell, Gilbert glanced back at the younger Oz. The nostalgic face made his heart throb. "That's..." He managed one word out before the older Oz caught the rest of the sentence.

"'A younger Oz?!' Right? Correct! So, why're you here...?" Oz bent down next to the younger Gilbert and patted his head gently, smiling at him.

Younger Gilbert blushed, hugging Oz and placing a soft kiss on his cheek, to which the older Gilbert easily objected. "H-hey, that's not—!" He couldn't even object correctly due to the fact that the younger Oz was climbing all over him like he was some sort of playground.

Younger Oz shouted, chanting the word "Gil" over and over again as he climbed onto Gilbert's shoulders, kicking his feet violently.

"Ack—! H-hey!" The older Gilbert reached his arms back to grab at the younger Oz, but younger Oz only protested.

"No! No! Gil!" Younger Oz kicked even harder somehow, causing Gilbert to falter, almost losing his balance again.

"O-Oz, help me out h-here...!" Gilbert stumbled over to the older Oz, finally grabbing onto younger Oz's shirt collar and holding him out in front of him. "W-what's going on...?" His voice sounded strained already.

"Eh? Are you having trouble?" Oz looked up from where he was crouching next to the younger Gilbert, who was holding onto Oz's shirt sleeve. He looked scared.

Gilbert's eyebrow twitched slightly at the sight of a younger him hiding behind Oz. It really should've been the other way around, to him...

Oz picked the younger Gilbert up and placed him on his shoulders, mimicking how his younger self was positioned on the older Gilbert's shoulders. "Hey, Gil, look. Now we're twins!"

"Not...exactly..." Gilbert huffed out the words, exhausted from it already. It hadn't even been long, but he was already growing irritated. However, young or not, Oz _was_ Gilbert's master, and he had to obey him.

Oz's head cocked to the side in confusion. "Hmm?" With the question out, he shrugged, not expecting an answer from Gilbert anyway. "Hey, Gil, watch this~!" He playfully held onto the younger Gilbert's legs as he started running around in circles, Gilbert's younger self squealing in excitement.

Gilbert looked displeased. "O-Oz, d-don't..." He began to protest against Oz's actions, but trailed off, knowing that he wouldn't be able to convince Oz to stop anyway. It did make Gilbert a bit jealous, seeing Oz play happily with a child who may or may not be his younger self. Sure, they looked like him, but it could just be a random child. In which case, they both needed to be guided back to their mothers right away.

 _But..._ Gilbert immersed himself in his own thoughts for a moment. _If they're just random children, why did the younger-looking Oz know my name...?_ He suddenly flinched violently at that thought. This could be seriously bad.

"Oz!" When Gilbert suddenly shouted his name, Oz skidded to a halt in front of him.

"Hmm? What is it, Gil?" His master tilted his head a bit to the side, looking confused and a bit surprised at the outburst from his valet.

"T-they really _are_ us..." He murmured the words as if they would kill him if he said them any louder. Oz only tilted his head in reply.

"Hmm, I suppose it's working then~" A male stood against the windowsill, looking out at the courtyard below. Out there were two other males, one being Gilbert Nightray, and the other being Oz Vessalius. It was quite the sight to see the two playing together with what seemed like young children. However, the one man inside knew something that others looking on from afar didn't. Those weren't any ordinary children. They were, illusions per se, of the two. A very strange sight, indeed.

"Haha, Gil, wait up!"

Gilbert flinched, looking around for where the faint voice of his master had come from. _Ah, right..._ He tilted his head a bit to the side, a throbbing feeling coming from his chest. _He means the other Gil..._

"Gilbert?" A voice came from behind the ravenet, and he jumped up on impulse.

"O-oh, it's only you, Sharon..." Gilbert wiped his brow of the small beads of sweat that had formed almost instantly after he had heard his voice. "P-Please don't scare me like that..."

"Oh, I'm sorry." Sharon giggled, putting her hand up to her mouth. "You seemed troubled, so I thought I would help you out. What's the matter?"

Gilbert shook his head, watching Oz run around with the smaller Gilbert from the corner of his eye. Even though he was two stories up, their playful voices could still be heard inside as well.

"Ah, so _that's_ what was making all the ruckus..." Sharon smiled softly as she stepped over to the window, watching Oz play with the younger boys as well. "He's quite good with children, wouldn't you agree?"

The ravenet looked up at Sharon, his face clearly showing shock. "I—um..." He couldn't seem to find the right words.

Sharon giggled at him. "I see," she mumbled. "May I have a seat?"

Gilbert nodded slowly, still confused as to what she wanted with him, but he didn't say anything.

"Your problem currently is about Oz, am I correct?"

Gilbert flinched again, wanting to deny that with all his might, saying, _Of course not! Oz and I are always on great terms! There's nothing to worry about!_ But a part of him willed itself out of his throat and he ended up murmuring, "I-I suppose..."

"Right, of course," Sharon murmured, folding her hands delicately in her lap. She smiled sweetly at Gilbert and continued, "I assume it has to do with your relationship then?"

Gilbert flinched violently, and his face flushed. "N-not at all!" He protested. "I-it's just... I-I actually d-don't know..." He looked away, biting his lip out of embarrassment.

By the way Sharon was still calm and composed, along with the faint smug look on her face, it was easy to tell she would be thinking something along the line of, _Spot on._

"Hmm, that's troublesome, isn't it...?" The blonde stood up slowly, bowing her head a bit. "Thank you for your time, Gilbert." With her gratitude and final words to Gilbert, she smiled and left the room, leaving the ravenet shocked and confused.

"My, my... What a strange thing to ask, milady..." Break turned around, an impish smile plastered across his face. "What ever could drive you to think that _I_ would do such a thing...?"

Sharon sighed heavily. "Duplicates don't just appear out of nowhere, Break."

"Mmn..." All Break could do was hum cheerfully in reply at this point. He knew he would've been found out easily once Sharon had found out about the duplicates, but he really didn't want to stop now. The fun had only begun!

"Break," Sharon demanded, "get rid of those duplicates this instant."

Break turned back to the window he was leaning against and looked out over the courtyard. "...They sure do have a lot of energy, wouldn't you agree...?"

"Break, this is not the time." Sharon was becoming impatient, and she stomped her foot lightly.

"Now, now, Sharon. You mustn't ruin the show. It's only begun..."

Gilbert sighed as he paced around his room. Problems, problems, problems. Those were the only things on his mind at the moment.

"Gil!"

The sharp voice of his master and the door slamming open behind him caused Gilbert to jolt violently, even a few beads of sweat forming on his forehead instantly.

Oz ran into the room, gripping onto Gilbert's sleeve and shaking his rapidly. "I've lost them! I've lost our kids!"

Gilbert took a moment to process what his master was saying before he felt all the heat rise to his head. _Our kids?! What is he talking about?! We haven't even had—_

"Gil, are you listening to me?!" Oz shook Gilbert a few more times. "We have to find them!"

Gilbert opened his mouth to reply, forcing himself not to stutter. "Ah, right... I'm sorry!" He bowed his head slightly to Oz.

"There's no time for that!" Oz shouted, pulling Gilbert along as he ran off towards the courtyard. "We have to find them!"

"Mister, where are we?"

"Under a special tree." Break glanced down at the two younger duplicates of the master and valet who were probably the closest people in all of Pandora, and smiled softly.

"Why...?" The younger Oz seemed to be the one talking the most at the moment, the other Gilbert hiding behind him. It was now that Break might've realized just how close they really seemed to be.

"Well, I'm taking you home," Break replied simply, kneeling down next to the two small boys and patting their heads. "All you have to do is close your eyes, alright?"

The boys took a glance at each other before the younger Oz mumbled, "Okay..."

They both closed their eyes, and Break's smile disappeared. _I really wanted to have more fun with this... What a waste of time..._

"Did you find them?!" Oz shouted at Gilbert, who was practically covered in sweat at the moment.

"No...!" Gilbert called back, frantically running around, looking everywhere to find the two children duplicates of themselves.

"What's this...? Some sort of ritual...?"

"Break!" Oz's head shot up and he ran over to the silveret. "Can you help us look?!" He asked, his tone sounding extremely panicked.

"Whatever for?" Break asked, a wry smile creeping onto his face.

"W-well, you see, they're kids! But they look exactly like us!" Oz made gestures and movements with his hands as he spoke, and he seemed very enthusiastic.

"Oh, _them_?" Break asked, faking a pitied look. "Well, I sent them back home since they didn't belong here... My sincerest apologies..."

Oz looked down, mumbling an, "Oh," before shaking his head. "That's alright, thank you." He bowed slightly, turning to Gilbert and grabbing his arm. "Let's go."

"W-where...?" Gilbert asked hesitantly, raising an eyebrow as he walked alongside his master.

"Nowhere in particular."


End file.
